Feasts and festival meals
The meal that marks a day, a rite or a season, and how it is kept.
A feast is the meal that makes a day: the Passover seder, the Georgian supra, the Thanksgiving table, the iftar that ends a Ramadan day, a wedding banquet. These pages are about the customs of the feast, such as who is invited, what is said and done, and how it is closed, and not about the recipes. For those, see Thali.
A meal with a script
Feasts usually have an order: a blessing, a toast, a symbolic first food, a story that is retold. Those who attend know when to speak, when to stand and what is expected of a guest.
Marking time
Feasts mark the year (harvest, new year, midwinter) and a life (birth, marriage, death). The same table can hold both: a village feast that celebrates the harvest and also settles who is married to whom.
About this page
Written by the EveryParampara desk with AI assistance. Background on Feasts and festival meals (meal). Customs differ from place to place and family to family. If this is your tradition and we have it wrong, tell us.
🇺🇸 United States and 1 moreIslamic marriageنِكَاح
The sacred contract, agreement and wedding celebration forming an Islamic marriageRite of passage · Feasts and festival meals
🇳🇬 Ibadan, Nigeria and 1 moreYoruba naming ceremonyÌkòlọ́pọ̀ Orúkọ Yorùbá
A rite of passage where a newborn receives a destiny name through divination and family celebration.Rite of passage · Feasts and festival meals
🇮🇩 Indonesia and 2 moreKenduri
A communal prayer meal and gathering shared across Indonesia, Malaysia and BruneiSpiritual · Feasts and festival meals
🇨🇦 Canada and 1 morePotlatch
A ceremonial feast of gift-giving and wealth distribution among First Nations on the Northwest Coast.Festival · Feasts and festival meals
🇮🇩 IndonesiaSlametan
A short communal meal on Java where neighbours share food, prayer and a wish for peaceSpiritual · Feasts and festival meals
🇺🇦 Ukraine and 4 moreKorovaiкоровай (Ukrainian), каравай (Russian)
A round wedding bread of Eastern Europe, baked with songs and shared by all the guestsTable custom · Feasts and festival meals
🇧🇬 Bulgaria and 4 moreBabindenБабинден
A Bulgarian feast honoring midwives and new mothers with rituals of bathing, feasting, and blessing.Festival · Feasts and festival meals
🇺🇸 United States and 3 moreWedding reception
The party after a wedding, where the couple greet guests over food, cake and dancingFestival · Feasts and festival meals
🇮🇱 Jerusalem, Israel and 5 moreBar and bat mitzvahבַּר מִצְוָה / בַּת מִצְוָה
A Jewish rite of passage marking when youth reach adulthood and take responsibility for their own actions.Rite of passage · Feasts and festival meals
🇬🇭 GhanaOutdooringkpojiemɔ (Ga), abadinto (Akan), vihehedego (Ewe)
A Ghanaian ceremony eight days after birth, when a baby is brought outdoors and namedRite of passage · Feasts and festival meals
🇺🇸 United StatesRehearsal dinner
A meal the night before a US wedding, when the wedding party gathers to toast and thankRite of passage · Dinner
🇮🇳 IndiaZoroastrian wedding
A multi-day Zoroastrian ceremony uniting two people through prayers, rituals and a shared meal.Rite of passage · Dinner
🇲🇽 Tijuana, Mexico and 1 moreBirria
A rich, seasoned meat stew from western Mexico, cooked for gatherings and holidaysTable custom · Feasts and festival meals
🇱🇰 Sri LankaKiribathකිරිබත්
Rice cooked in coconut milk, the dish of Sinhalese New Year and family beginningsTable custom · Breakfast
🇮🇩 Bali, IndonesiaTumpengꦠꦸꦩ꧀ꦥꦼꦁ (Javanese); ᬢᬸᬫ᭄ᬧᭂᬂ (Balinese)
A tall cone of rice ringed with side dishes, central to Javanese ceremonies and partiesTable custom · Feasts and festival meals
🇪🇬 Egypt and 5 moreLibation
The ceremonial gift of drink given to deities, ancestors, and the earthSpiritual · Tea, coffee and drinking ceremonies
🇪🇬 EgyptOpening of the mouth ceremony
An ancient Egyptian rite to awaken a spirit's senses for the afterlifeRite of passage · Feasts and festival meals
🇷🇺 Russia and 5 moreRadonitsaРа́доница (Russian), Ра́даўніца (Belarusian)
A spring day when Orthodox families visit graves, share Easter food and greet the deadSpiritual · Feasts and festival meals
🇮🇹 Italy and 4 moreRosalia
An ancient Roman festival of decorating graves, statues, and standards with fresh flowersSpiritual · Feasts and festival meals
🇬🇷 Athens, GreeceAmphidromiaτὰ Ἀμφιδρόμια
An ancient Athenian family ritual welcoming a newborn around the household hearthRite of passage · Feasts and festival meals
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreBengali Hindu weddingবাঙালি হিন্দু বিবাহ
A Bengali Hindu wedding ceremony spanning days of turmeric rites, sacred vows, and welcoming rituals.Rite of passage · Feasts and festival meals
🇮🇳 India and 1 morePunjabi wedding traditions
The multi-day marriage customs and rituals of Hindu and Sikh Punjabi familiesRite of passage · Sweets given and shared
🇧🇳 BruneiBrunei Malay wedding
A multi-stage marriage ritual of the Brunei Malay community, blending Islamic vows with traditional blessings and publicRite of passage · Feasts and festival meals
🇮🇹 ItalyDies lustricus
An ancient Roman naming ceremony where a newborn was purified and given their first name.Rite of passage · Feasts and festival meals
🇺🇸 New York, United StatesBark Mitzvah
A lighthearted coming of age celebration held by dog owners for their petsFestival · Feasts and festival meals
🇧🇩 Bangladesh and 1 moreShagoranaসাগরানা
A ceremonial wedding feast platter presented to the groom in BangladeshTable custom · Feasts and festival meals
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Kenduri: Andreasprasetya, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Potlatch: James Gilchrist Swan (1818–1900), Public domain, source
- Birria: Equipo 9mkt, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Islamic marriage: عامر شاہین, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Slametan: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Korovai: Olli Niemitalo, CC0, source
- Babinden: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Wedding reception: Konstantin Makovsky, Public domain, source
- Bar and bat mitzvah: Peter van der Sluijs, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Kiribath: AntanO, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Tumpeng: brother-harahap, CC BY 2.0, source
- Radonitsa: Perohanych, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Libation: Arkady Zarubin ( Аркадий Зарубин ), CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Opening of the mouth ceremony: Hunefer, Public domain, source
- Rosalia: Lawrence Alma-Tadema, Public domain, source
- Bengali Hindu wedding: Sumita Roy Dutta, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Punjabi wedding traditions: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Shagorana: Caped CrusaderK, CC0, source